Archive for January, 2010

Georgetown’s Alma Roach announced Tuesday, Jan. 26 that she is seeking the post at the Sussex County Recorder of Deeds.

“I just feel with my experience in the use of records, it would bring something new to the office in quite some time,” she said.

Roach is the first challenger to emerge in a position held by John Brady. Roach announced her plans for the row-office seat at a Georgetown rally for Frank Shade who officially announced Tuesday, Jan. 26 his bid for the 37th House District seat – a seat held by Rep. Ruth Briggs King, who won a special election in September.
Roach is a title searcher with the Georgetown-based law firm Fuqua & Yori.

“We need to preserve history of the office, but at the same time, move ahead with a contemporary office. We need to remember the recorder of deeds office is the heart and soul of Sussex County and its history,” she said.

Roach is planning rallies and fundraisers in March, when she will officially announce her bid.

Democrat Frank Shade, president of Punkin Chunkin for seven years, is seeking the Democratic nomination for the 37th Representative District, a seat held by Republican Ruth Briggs King.
In a special election last year, Briggs King won the seat, topping Georgetown attorney Democrat Rob Robinson, who won the nomination in a vote of the Sussex County Democrats.Shade, 61, lives in Nesbitt Station just outside Lewes and is Sussex County director of purchasing and fleet management. From 2002 to 2008, Shade served as president of the Punkin Chunkin Association, and, by choice, Shade said did not seek another term.
Instead, he became a Punkin Chunkin trustee and director of promotions and media. Under his presidency, he said Punkin Chunkin has earned an international reputation. Shade plans to announce his candidacy at 10 a.m., Tuesday, Jan. 26 at Georgetown’s Brick Hotel. Later that day, he will announce at 2 p.m., at The Buttery in Lewes.

The thrashing comes after a release was issued by Castle’s office Thursday, Jan. 7, crediting him with helping the state acquire $5.2 million that Democrats say were stimulus funds.

Not so, says Castle’s Legislative and Communications Director Kate Dickens. “Nothing we released or announced were stimulus funds. They were regular appropriation funds,” she said.

Dickens said funds for the homeless came from the Omnibus Appropriations Act in 2009. She said about $500,000 were included in the Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act of 2010. At one point, Castle did oppose the homeland security measure because it did not include sufficient funds for rail or transit security, she said. Later, she said, Castle ended up approving the bill.

Delaware Democratic Party Chairman John Daniello said, “In Congress, he does nothing to help create jobs and fix the economic crisis President Bush generated, but back in his district, he takes credit for projects opposed.”

Dickens said Democrats and some reporters need to do their homework. “Again, they’re not checking stimulus funds, they’re not checking their facts,” she said.

Kevin Spence has been a reporter for the Cape Gazette since 2004. Prior to living in Delaware, he was a senior correspondent for the New York Blade News. He completed the Graduate School of Journalism at Columbia University in 2001. In 2000, Spence was awarded a Scripps Howard Foundation grant to study in Israel and the Occupied Territories. In the same year, Spence wrote his master’s thesis about the black market economy under Castro while studying in Cuba. He also speaks Spanish.